Simon Beaufoy

Screenwriter Simon Beaufoy was the author of two of the most winning, crowd-pleasing feature films in movie history - the Oscar-nominated "Full Monty" (1997) and "Slumdog Millionaire," which won the h...
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British filmmaker Danny Boyle is reportedly set to direct a biopic about U.S. tennis legend Billie Jean King. The director has been working with his Slumdog Millionaire screenwriter Simon Beaufoy and producer Christian Colson to bring King's life story to the big screen in a film that will focus on her famous Battle of the Sexes win over former men's world number one Bobby Riggs in 1973, according to the New York Post's Page Six column.
A source tells the publication Boyle was in talks to take charge of the project last year (13), when he attended the London premiere of a King documentary prior to the 2013 Wimbledon Championships.
The insider says, "No one could figure out why Boyle was there. (But) he and Simon then met with King, and they're all meeting again in New York to work on the script."
The latest meeting is expected to take place this week (begs17Feb14) before King heads back to Sochi, Russia to represent the U.S. delegation at the Winter Olympics closing ceremony on Sunday (23Feb14).

Lions Gate via Everett Collection
When we last left our heroes, they had conquered all opponents in the 74th Annual Hunger Games, returned home to their newly refurbished living quarters in District 12, and fallen haplessly to the cannibalism of PTSD. And now we're back! Hitching our wagons once again to laconic Katniss Everdeen and her sweet-natured, just-for-the-camera boyfriend Peeta Mellark as they gear up for a second go at the Capitol's killing fields.
But hold your horses — there's a good hour and a half before we step back into the arena. However, the time spent with Katniss and Peeta before the announcement that they'll be competing again for the ceremonial Quarter Quell does not drag. In fact, it's got some of the film franchise's most interesting commentary about celebrity, reality television, and the media so far, well outweighing the merit of The Hunger Games' satire on the subject matter by having Katniss struggle with her responsibilities as Panem's idol. Does she abide by the command of status quo, delighting in the public's applause for her and keeping them complacently saturated with her smiles and curtsies? Or does Katniss hold three fingers high in opposition to the machine into which she has been thrown? It's a quarrel that the real Jennifer Lawrence would handle with a castigation of the media and a joke about sandwiches, or something... but her stakes are, admittedly, much lower. Harvey Weinstein isn't threatening to kill her secret boyfriend.
Through this chapter, Katniss also grapples with a more personal warfare: her devotion to Gale (despite her inability to commit to the idea of love) and her family, her complicated, moralistic affection for Peeta, her remorse over losing Rue, and her agonizing desire to flee the eye of the public and the Capitol. Oftentimes, Katniss' depression and guilty conscience transcends the bounds of sappy. Her soap opera scenes with a soot-covered Gale really push the limits, saved if only by the undeniable grace and charisma of star Lawrence at every step along the way of this film. So it's sappy, but never too sappy.
In fact, Catching Fire is a masterpiece of pushing limits as far as they'll extend before the point of diminishing returns. Director Francis Lawrence maintains an ambiance that lends to emotional investment but never imposes too much realism as to drip into territories of grit. All of Catching Fire lives in a dreamlike state, a stark contrast to Hunger Games' guttural, grimacing quality that robbed it of the life force Suzanne Collins pumped into her first novel.
Once we get to the thunderdome, our engines are effectively revved for the "fun part." Katniss, Peeta, and their array of allies and enemies traverse a nightmare course that seems perfectly suited for a videogame spin-off. At this point, we've spent just enough time with the secondary characters to grow a bit fond of them — deliberately obnoxious Finnick, jarringly provocative Johanna, offbeat geeks Beedee and Wiress — but not quite enough to dissolve the mystery surrounding any of them or their true intentions (which become more and more enigmatic as the film progresses). We only need adhere to Katniss and Peeta once tossed in the pit of doom that is the 75th Hunger Games arena, but finding real characters in the other tributes makes for a far more fun round of extreme manhunt.
But Catching Fire doesn't vie for anything particularly grand. It entertains and engages, having fun with and anchoring weight to its characters and circumstances, but stays within the expected confines of what a Hunger Games movie can be. It's a good one, but without shooting for succinctly interesting or surprising work with Katniss and her relationships or taking a stab at anything but the obvious in terms of sending up the militant tyrannical autocracy, it never even closes in on the possibility of being a great one.
3.5/5
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Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe is lacing up his running shoes after signing on to play British Olympian Sebastian Coe in a new biopic. The young actor will portray Coe, now a Lord, in a film about the running man's track rivalry with fellow British athlete Steve Ovett.
Radcliffe will reteam with his Woman in Black director James Watkins for the project, titled Gold.
Producers are still casting the actor who will portray Ovett in the film, which is being adapted from Pat Butcher's book The Perfect Distance by Slumdog Millionaire Oscar winner Simon Beaufoy.
The filmmaker recently told the BBC he's thoroughly enjoying researching Coe and Ovett's rivalry: "I hadn't realised how good it was until you dig into their past. They were fantastically different athletes and different people. And they rarely met... apart from on the track."
Filming is scheduled to begin in the U.K. and Russia next spring (Apr13).

Larry Busacca/Getty
Get ready to see Harry Potter wearing a lot of short shorts. In a presumed attempt to further his distance from The Boy Who Lived, Daniel Radcliffe is set to play the Olympic athlete Sebastian Coe in the British sports drama Gold, according to Deadline.
The film will follow the rivalry between middle-distance runners Sebastian Coe and Steve Ovett leading up to the 1980 Moscow games, where Coe and Ovett both took home gold for the race that the other was favorited to win. (Who else is super excited to see a whole lot of Radcliffe running for victory in tiny shorts while his hair flaps in the wind? Oh... just us then?).
Gold will reunite Radcliffe with James Watkins, who directed the actor in The Woman in Black. Simon Beaufoy (How to Train Your Dragon) will be penning the script that's based on Pat Butcher's book The Perfect Distance.
Filming is expected to begin in the UK and Russia in April 2014.
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Fox Searchlight
Brit Marling has joined James Nesbitt in director Danny Boyle's Babylon, UK cop drama about an American PR expert who attempts to bolster the image of the London police department. After her breakout in 2010's After Earth, Marling took a few parts in other films, but this will be her first starring role in a TV series. The show would look at every side of police work, like a (hopefully) more inventive Law and Order; with the American character there to bridge cultural differences, this could be the next British/American crossover hit. Boyle will be producing and directing while the show is written by Peep Show alums Sam Bains and Jesse Armstrong. And while Peep Show was a comedy, the amazing way in which it built moments and orchestrated the most elaborate possible embarrassment for its characters speaks to two great storytellers who should be able to transition well to drama.
Boyle seems determined to bring his signature visual style to both UK and American television, with projects developing on both sides of the Atlantic. In addition to Babylon, over here he's working with Simon Beaufoy and Christian Colson, who helped write and produce Boyle's films Slumdog Millionaire and 127 Hours, to beat Michael Bay to the story of the Norweigens who helped destroy Hitler's nuclear facilities. Their project is called Telemark and would appear on FX.
Boyle is confident that both Telemark and Babylon will be able to capture his unique filmmaking style, which is both visually ambitious and adrenaline-filled, despite the limited budget of television. So add Boyle to the list of talent who's stepping over to television from the world of film. Even if it's simply because he believes these two ideas are best suited for series instead of standalone stories, it does make it ever clearer that the move between the two mediums is a lateral one. And with Boyle's last film, Trance, underperforming at the box office, maybe he'll find that TV actually marks a better place for some of his ideas. Either way, it's a great gain for TV fans.
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Among the surprises to be found in the Golden Globe nominations announced Thursday morning, the unexpected recognition for one film really stood out. That little movie would be Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, which picked up three nods: Best Actor in a Comedy, for Ewan McGregor; Best Actress in a Comedy, for Emily Blunt; and Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. That's pretty major recognition for a film that only made $9 million Stateside. So what exactly is Salmon Fishing in the Yemen? Directed by Lasse Hallström (The Cider House Rules, Chocolat), it's a gentle indie starring McGregor and Blunt as a fly-fishing expert and a PR representative, respectively, who undertake a goodwill project to improve relations between the U.K. and Yemen. That project is to invest in a vision held by one of Yemen's most progressive and forward-thinking rulers, Sheikh Muhammad (Amr Waked), to bring salmon fishing to his country — quite a challenge, since you need a temperate climate and, obviously, an abundant water supply for salmon to thrive. Yemen, mostly covered by a scorching desert, has neither. It's a delicate "against all odds" story about starry-eyed dreamers trying to make the impossible possible. In short, the very definition of a "feel good" movie.
But Salmon Fishing in the Yemen certainly hasn't been discussed as an awards season contender — until the three Globe nominations it received today, that is. So how did this underseen gem win over the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and get these accolades?
1. The Musical or Comedy Category Allows for Films Released Earlier in the Year To Be Acknowledged
By its very nature, the Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy category allows for more films to be represented among the Globe contenders than are usually being buzzed about during the awards season. For one, that's because the guilds and the Oscars rarely award comedies. As such, it's entirely possible for a film that gets a Best Musical or Comedy nod at the Golden Globes to fail to pick a single nomination at any other major awards gathering. Witness such strong former nominees like 50/50, Burn After Reading, and In Bruges, and also such Musical or Comedy nominees like The Tourist, Red, Burlesque, and Alice in Wonderland (all four of which came from that gem of a movie year 2010). For two, the very fact that this category exists means that the HFPA has to cast a wider net and look back at movies released earlier in the year. Salmon Fishing came out on March 9, making it pretty much a no-show for the Academy Awards season. But the Globes have recently nominated Midnight in Paris, Bridesmaids, (500) Days of Summer, and, sigh, The Hangover — the wolf pack bros even won the statuette — all of which were released in the first half of their respective years.
2. International Co-Productions Do Well
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association is just that: an association of foreign journalists who write for publications based in Europe, Asia, Australia, and Central and South America, yet cover Hollywood. Often, they like to recognize films that cross national boundaries, and those typically come in the form of transnational productions with financing from studios outside of America. We're not talking about the latest subtitled art house film, mind you. Michael Haneke's Amour was very much ghettoized in the Best Foreign Language Film category. We're talking about films like The Tourist and Midnight in Paris that were funded largely by non-American studios like GK Films or StudioCanal, but that are in every other respect pretty much indistinguishable from a typical Hollywood movie. Or an American-funded movie with a largely non-American cast like this year's nominee Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen represents a kind of transnational sweet spot here because it had American funding in part by Lionsgate, with the rest picked up by Britain's BBC Films, Kudos Films, and the U.K. Film Council. And it featured a totally non-American cast of Brits (McGregor, Blunt, and Kristin Scott Thomas), and Middle Eastern megastar Amr Waked.
3. It Has a Likable But Under-Lauded Cast
As far as Ewan McGregor and Emily Blunt's nominations are concerned, we say, "About time!" It's hard to think of two more consistently solid, often brilliant, actors working in the industry. But for all their critical accolades, they've been pretty much overlooked whenever awards season comes around. The only major American award Blunt has received was a Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe for the BBC TV movie Gideon's Daughter in 2007. She also received Globe nods for The Devil Wears Prada (where she was arguably the best thing about that movie that wasn't named Meryl Streep) in 2007 and The Young Victoria in 2009, but the Academy has never taken notice of her work. Shockingly, this is only McGregor's second Globe nod (he's never been Oscar nominated, either) after his nomination for Moulin Rouge! in 2002. His great performances from Trainspotting to The Ghost Writer drew raves... and awards season yawns. Maybe the HFPA decided it was time to give these two a bit more recognition. Even Hollywood.com called their work in Salmon Fishing Oscar-bait earlier this year.
4. Golden Globe Winner Simon Beaufoy Wrote the Script
The Golden Globe and Oscar-winning scribe of Slumdog Millionaire was already an HFPA favorite. And, though he was working in far more subtle territory than 2008's bombastic Slumdog, he drops us into the bustling maelstrom of a modernizing Middle East much the same way he did with India, appealing once again to the HFPA's appreciation of a globalized cinema.
5. It’s a Light Comedy, But It Shows the Middle-East in a Way We Rarely See It.
Salmon Fishing is actually quite an important movie. After years of movies and TV shows — not to mention the news media — focusing on terrorism, warfare, dictatorships, poverty, misogyny when it comes to the Middle East, here's a film that offers a more balanced view. Yes, the region, and specifically Yemen, face tremendous challenges, but there are also many parts of the Middle East that are modern, tolerant melting pots populated by forward-thinking people who reject extremism. With the character of Sheikh Muhammad, Beaufoy and director Hallström, offer up an incredibly positive Arab character — something in short supply in our stereotype-glutted media landscape — and a vision of a nation trying to move beyond its violent history. It doesn't gloss over the very real challenges that Yemen faces, terrorism among them, but it also doesn't define this region by violence. In that regard, it's the anti-Zero Dark Thirty.
6. It’s a Damn Good Movie
McGregor and Blunt spark with screwball verve, Hallström luxuriates in beautiful landscapes, and Beaufoy offers up a quixotic quest about achieving beauty and contentment under impossible conditions. It's a cliché to say it, but Salmon Fishing in the Yemen really is one of the best "feel good" movies of the year. No wonder the Golden Globes acknowledged it.
Follow Christian Blauvelt on Twitter @Ctblauvelt
[Photo Credit: CBS Films]
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The Hunger Games franchise sure does love its Lawrences.
Lionsgate is calling on The Hunger Games: Catching Fire director Francis Lawrence again to helm the two-part finale, Mockingjay. Lawrence, who is currently filming Catching Fire with the cast and crew (including fellow Lawrence, Jennifer Lawrence and Liam Hemsworth, pictured) "will then presumably set to work immediately on The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2."
Lawrence took over director duties from Gary Ross — who helped propel 2011's The Hunger Games to a $686 million intake at the worldwide box office — after tight scheduling conflicts caused Ross to pass on the opportunity to film the follow-ups. When it came to choosing a director for Catching Fire, Lawrence bested the likes of David Cronenberg, Alfonso Cuaron Alejandrom and Gonzalez Inarritu. Lawrence, whose visions of a ravaged landscape was pulled off with flying colors in films like I Am Legend and Constantine and knows a thing or two about working with franchise heartthrobs (see: Robert Pattinson in Water For Elephants), must have impressed Lionsgate. Still, there will be some tonal changes behind the scenes from Catching Fire to Mockingjay. While Oscar-winner Simon Beaufoy (Slumdog Millionaire) penned the Catching Fire script, Emmy-winner Danny Strong (Game Change) is taking on writing duties for the decidedly darker, and divisive, conclusion. Catching Fire is slated to arrive in theaters by November 22, 2013. Part 1 of Mockingjay is scheduled for November 21, 2014, while Part 2 is set for November 20, 2015. Additional reporting by Matt Patches. [Photo Credit: Murray Close/Lionsgate]
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The upcoming sequel to The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, is now known as The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.
And it's a good thing, because the inclusion of the word "sequel" when discussing Catching Fire — well, needless to say, that was really starting to take its toll on all of us.
The action-adventure adaptation will feature almost all of the same cast members from the March blockbuster, including Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth and more; behind the camera, though, will be completely different with new director Francis Lawrence and big-shot writers Michael Arndt and Simon Beaufoy now on board. The movie is already penciled for release on Nov. 22, 2013.
[Image: Lionsgate]
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Earlier, Hollywood.com reported that Lionsgate's rabid search for The Hunger Games sequel director had finally come to an end. Reportedly, Francis Lawrence, the man behind Constantine, I Am Legend, and Water for Elephants, is currently in negotiations to helm Catching Fire, is taking over the position recently vacated by Hunger Games writer/director Gary Ross. WIth a set release date, a tight window for shooting (there have been reported scheduling concerns with Jennifer Lawrence's commitment to the X-Men: First Class sequel), and a script that's in flux, Lawrence has a pressured task on his plate. But as Lionsgate knows, if there's anyone who can pull it off, it's Lawrence.
At the beginning of his career, Lawrence cut his teeth in the world of commercials and music videos. He's a director with a keen eye — basically, the complete opposite of Ross, who started as a writer. When he made the jump to features, he found a project that fit his sensibilities. Constantine is a visually wild comic book movie, tackling some heady ideas but executed with a spectacle flair that would become Lawrence's signature. I Am Legend continued the trend, an adept ability to construct large-scale, FX-driven films, and even Water for Elephants, Lawrence's foray into historical drama, is as interested in the production design of the circus as it is Robert Pattinson's performance.
Lawrence isn't entirely style over substance. In 2009, the director executive produced and helmed the pilot for Kings, a twist of the Biblical tale of David set in a dystopian future. Lawrence accommodated a TV budget for the project and the result was a restrained, thought-provoking piece of entertainment. Catching Fire feels like a blend of the director's strengths — when the movie needs to go big, as the next round of Hunger Games will ultimately demand, Lawrence is in his wheelhouse. When the movie scales back, he has the TV skills in his back pocket. Kings (which starred up-and-comer Chris Egan), as well as his big screen team-up with Pattinson, honed Lawrence's skills working with young actors. Stepping into a trio of professional twentysomethings could be a bigger challenge for the untested, but the director has proved himself capable of weaving that kind of talent into his projects.
Anne Thompson at Indiewire makes an astute observation on why Lawrence would take the job: The guy is guaranteed a hit, and is willing to compromise with the studio to make it happen on time, on budget, and on the track Ross has laid out. There were a handful of directors on Lionsgate's shortlist, but none that really needed a blockbuster like Catching Fire, or who would be willing to bend backwards on their own visions. With a very short span of time in which to plan the movie and get it in the can, the studio needs a guy with the knowhow to step in and make it happen. That's Lawrence.
It's the Harry Potter vs. Twilight debate: Is it better to roll out the films at lengthier intervals, affording new directors time to craft the installments from their own imaginations, or is the momentum of continual releases key? The Twilight films satisfy fans, but they're not groundbreaking cinematic experiences. They all feel the same. Lawrence, for better or worse, can build upon Hunger Games in an identifiable way.
With a great writer, Oscar-winner Simon Beaufoy (Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours), and a purist author guiding the series along (Suzanne Collins has the final word on nearly everything related to the Hunger Games franchise), there's no reason to think that Catching Fire won't match the expectations coming off the first movie. Francis Lawrence is a competent filmmaker who can whip up an in-tune sequel without breaking a sweat. If he accepts the deal — which most insiders believe he will — we can expect Catching Fire to make its Nov. 23, 2013 premiere date. Now what that means for I Am Legend 2...
Find Matt Patches directly on Twitter @misterpatches and remember to follow @Hollywood_com!
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The Brit, who won gold at the Academy Awards for his Slumdog Millionaire script, took on the project because he thought author Suzanne Collins' novel was "interesting" - but now he realises he has the book's avid fans to satisfy.
He tells WENN, "I'm working on Catching Fire, which is the second in the Hunger Games trilogy. I took this on in a rather naive way thinking, 'This is a really interesting book,' not realising that the entire teenage female population of America is watching its every move very closely.
"I found I took on a much bigger commitment than I realised! It's very exciting. They're very interesting books. Suzanne Collins is a very clever writer. That's my job to get inside the heads of the characters.
"I've gotten inside the head of people in slums in India (Slumdog Millionaire), so it won't be a problem to get inside a teenager's head."

Won Euston Films Best Script Award (sponsored by Fuji Film) for his first script "Cello"

Penned the adaptation of the comedy "Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day"

Summary

Screenwriter Simon Beaufoy was the author of two of the most winning, crowd-pleasing feature films in movie history - the Oscar-nominated "Full Monty" (1997) and "Slumdog Millionaire," which won the hearts of moviegoers in 2008. Both projects were distinguished by the considerable warmth and excitement of their underdog stories, as well as a latent streak of social commentary about the ability of the disenfranchised to rise above their situation, despite the worst intentions of the establishment. In addition to these hits, Beaufoy worked extensively in independent British cinema on films like "Among Giants" (1998) and "Darkest Light" (1999). The success of "Monty" and especially "Slumdog" assured Beaufoy's status as one of the international scene's most promising screenwriters.